digital 8 players? current camcorders w/analog in? xferring vhs

26 Jun 2006 2:06 PM

Mad Scientist Jr

I have a bunch of videos on VHS and digital-8 that I want to get onto
my computer for editing. About 5 yrs ago I got a Sony DCR TRV230 which
had analog in, I got good results going from my S-VHS VCR's s-video out
(to get s-video xfer quality for regular VHS tapes) into the camcorder
for digitizing VHS, then from the Sony via firewire into my PC to edit.

Recently my Sony died (the tape transport - which I had fixed several
times while it was under warranty - broke) leaving me with 50+
digital-8 tapes and still a bunch of VHS tapes not yet converted to
digital.

So I have three needs
1. A new camcorder - preferably tapeless - I'd like to minimize moving
parts and prefer a camera with a small size, possibly something like
the JVC Everio G Series or Sanyo Tapeless CameraCorder.

But do any tapeless camcorders have analog in?
Do they all store in compressed (MPEG-4) format? Do any store in that
constant 5:1 compression (came out to ~13 GB / hr) that my Sony
digital-8 used, which after re-compressing to DVD, maintained quality?

2. A player for my digital-8 tapes with firewire out to get them into
my PC

3. Assuming the camcorder either doesn't have analog in, some method to
digitize my remaining VHS tapes (there are a lot). Since I'm going to
do lots of editing, I'm not sure I want something that just saves
straight to DVD (MPEG compressed) format such as those all in one
VHS>DVD units.

Can anyone recommend some products or methods that have worked for them
for any of the above?

Much appreciated...

Sanyo Tapeless CameraCorder with MPEG-4 + 5.25MP Capability #SA256
http://www.sharperimage.com/us/en/catalog/product/sku__SA256

JVC Everio G Series
GZ-MG77 (2.2 Mega, Wide Screen, F1.2 Lens, 30GB)
GZ-MG37 (32x zoom, wide screen, 30GB)
GZ-MG27 (32x zoom, wide screen, 20GB)
http://www.jvc.com/presentations/everio_g/

26 Jun 2006 6:42 PM

iws

Show quote Hide quote

"Mad Scientist Jr" <usenet_daugh***@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1151330806.550225.82930@m73g2000cwd.googlegroups.com...
> I have a bunch of videos on VHS and digital-8 that I want to get onto
> my computer for editing. About 5 yrs ago I got a Sony DCR TRV230 which
> had analog in, I got good results going from my S-VHS VCR's s-video out
> (to get s-video xfer quality for regular VHS tapes) into the camcorder
> for digitizing VHS, then from the Sony via firewire into my PC to edit.
>
>
> Recently my Sony died (the tape transport - which I had fixed several
> times while it was under warranty - broke) leaving me with 50+
> digital-8 tapes and still a bunch of VHS tapes not yet converted to
> digital.
>
> So I have three needs
> 1. A new camcorder - preferably tapeless - I'd like to minimize moving
> parts and prefer a camera with a small size, possibly something like
> the JVC Everio G Series or Sanyo Tapeless CameraCorder.
>
> But do any tapeless camcorders have analog in?
> Do they all store in compressed (MPEG-4) format? Do any store in that
> constant 5:1 compression (came out to ~13 GB / hr) that my Sony
> digital-8 used, which after re-compressing to DVD, maintained quality?
>
> 2. A player for my digital-8 tapes with firewire out to get them into
> my PC
>
> 3. Assuming the camcorder either doesn't have analog in, some method to
> digitize my remaining VHS tapes (there are a lot). Since I'm going to
> do lots of editing, I'm not sure I want something that just saves
> straight to DVD (MPEG compressed) format such as those all in one
> VHS>DVD units.
>
> Can anyone recommend some products or methods that have worked for them
> for any of the above?
>
> Much appreciated...

Your best approach may just to be to pick up a used digital8 camcorder on
eBay making sure it's a model with analog in. Then transfer all your tapes
onto the computer and resell the camcorder on eBay. As for the new formats,
I am planning to replace my broken digital8 with a miniDV tape machine
because they are popular, cheap and the technology is mature. Digital8 is
dying as Sony lets it languish. Ultimately, I believe there will be a shift
to flash memory camcorders. There are already 8GB compactflash cards on the
market for under $200 and you can expect further drops in the future. Even
high speed 4GB SD cards are available for under $100. Going to flash memory
will, of course elminate the tape/hard drive/optical drive mechanical issues
that limit the durability of today's machines. Unfortunately, there's not
much choice today in flash memory camcorders.

digital 8 players? current camcorders w/analog in? xferring vhs > pc for editiing?